


take my hand in your hand

by rronanllynch



Series: the same big and little words: twitter drabbles [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Confessions, First Kiss, M/M, Tenderness, hand holding, painting nails
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-21
Updated: 2019-04-21
Packaged: 2020-01-23 14:18:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,081
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18551488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rronanllynch/pseuds/rronanllynch
Summary: “No, not my parents,” Tadashi chewed on his lip, “I don’t want anyone at school to see and say weird things about me.”Tadashi settled on “weird” rather than what he really wanted to say: true. His biggest fear was that people would say true things about him. Kei’s face was still pinched in anger but Tadashi could see the gears whirling behind his eyes.“Okay, so I’ll do it too.”—————Tadashi wants to paint his nails, Tsukki obliges.





	take my hand in your hand

The sun went down outside of Kei’s room and darkness collapsed in around them, the same way it only ever did when you spent all afternoon wrapped up in something and only looked up after you realized you couldn’t see anymore. 

The “something” they were wrapped up in today, homework long completed (Kei) and abandoned (Tadashi) beside them, was Polygon’s unraveled. They’d started because it was a video about Zelda, which they both loved. Their mothers had pictures of their matching Link costumes from when they were 10 to prove that. But that had quickly turned into video after video, Kei and Tadashi’s thighs brushing closer and closer on Kei’s bed. 

For once, Tadashi was unphased by closeness on Kei’s bed. Because he was enthralled by everything else happening on the screen of Kei’s laptop. Tadashi didn’t throw this around lightly but, he paused to contemplate the thought, yeah he was in love with Brian David Gilbert. Maybe. Or he wanted to be him? There was a lot to unpack there. 

But he wasn’t about to tell any of that to Kei. That would be ridiculous. Kei had come far since their first year of high school but bringing up his conflicting feelings for the video game guru would just lead to him coming out and then expose his crush on Kei and then the whole thing would come collapsing down around them. So no, Tadashi wasn’t going to do that. 

Kei looked over at him. 

“What?” Tadashi asked once it was clear that Kei wasn’t going to look away. 

“You look,” Kei paused, trying to find his words, “weird.”

Tadashi rolled his eyes. 

“Thanks, Tsukki.”

Kei rolled his eyes right back. 

“What are you thinking about?”

Kei’s tone was carefully neutral and maybe anyone else would have been fooled but Tadashi knew Kei was actually curious. 

“I just,” excuses and lies popped in Tadashi’s head like popcorn, “wish I could paint my nails like he does!”

Tadashi gestured to where Brian David Gilbert is holding up a picture of a T-Rex, shiny silver nail polish glinting in the light. 

Kei blinks. Tadashi blinks. 

It wasn’t a lie, technically, he did want to paint his nails. Every time he saw Yachi paint hers Tadashi complimented them, and though she always offered to paint his too he refused. Painting his nails would just draw attention and questions and he was doing so good staying in the closet. Tadashi closed his eyes. Any small slip up could reveal his secret. 

Kei looked at the laptop screen, then back at Tadashi. 

“Okay,” he paused the video. 

“What.” 

Kei shrugged. 

“Let’s paint your nails.”

Tadashi had yet to respond but Kei was undeterred and stood up to rifle through his desk drawer, clicking his desk lamp on as he did so. The bedroom was bathed in soft yellow light. 

The meticulousness that Kei appeared to have in his life didn’t extend to in there. Tadashi knew better than anyone that Kei was just as messy as any other teenage boy, he just shoved it into drawers and closets and under his bed. Tadashi shuddered. Once he’d reached under the bed when he dropped his pencil and found a used tissue from the last time Kei had the flu...a year ago. 

Kei emerges from his dumpster digging victorious, wielding a bottle of clear nail polish and black nail polish. He sets the clear aside and makes his way back to the bed. Tadashi eyes it and him skeptically, but as usual, Kei’s face gives nothing away. 

“It’s okay, Tsukki! Really! We don’t have to!”

Tadashi backs up instinctually when Kei sits back down on his bed with the nail polish bottles. 

“You said you wanted to, though.”

Kei saw right through him, obviously. Tadashi sighed. This battle was over before it begun. 

“I can just do it myself.”

Kei let out a “tch” as he shook the bottles. 

“It’ll just come out messy. It’s fine.”

Tadashi was mesmerized by twist of Kei’s fingers and hands as he shook the bottle. So mesmerized that he missed the pink that dusted Kei’s face. 

Kei reached forward hesitantly, brow pinched in concentration as he held Tadashi’s hand lightly. Tadashi held his breath as Kei brought the brush towards his finger tips. 

Eventually though, Tadashi has to inhale and he lets his breath out in a whoosh. Kei must hear, or feel, the gentle touch of Tadashi’s breath on his fingertips because he looks up then, pausing as he finishes the pinky on Tadashi’s left hand. 

They’re so close Tadashi can see the freckles of brown in Kei’s otherwise golden eyes, and the way Kei’s eyes widen with realization when he notices how close they are. Tadashi‘s eyes close of their own accord and he can feel Kei’s breath on his own face and his heartbeat in his throat.

After a second though, he feels more than hears Kei pull back. 

“Uh,” Tadashi opens his eyes to see Kei looking resolutely over his shoulder, “I need your other hand.”

Tadashi looked down, surprised. Oh right, they were doing something. 

“Sorry, Tsukki,” he chirped our on habit, smile falling easily onto his lips. 

Kei didn’t look up, but this time Tadashi couldn’t miss the pink crawling up his neck. 

They sat in silence as Kei worked and Tadashi studied him. Tadashi stifled the urge to let out another lovesick sigh. Kei looked up when he finished Tadashi’s other hand, and they stayed sitting close together with their knees touching as Tadashi inspected Kei’s work. 

“Wow, Tsukki! This is really good? How did you learn how to do this?!” 

Tadashi looked up at Kei with adoring eyes. Kei lifted his hand to his mouth to bite a nail before he stopped himself, and held out his hand like an explanation. 

“Because I bite them when I’m nervous. My mom thought painting them would make me stop.” 

Tadashi barked out a laugh before covering his mouth. 

“But you chew your nails around me all the time, Tsukki. It didn’t work very well.”

Kei looked at him steadily before breaking the eye contact again. 

“It only worked part of the time.”

Tadashi smiled down at his nails in response to Kei’s admission, before his smile melted off his face. 

“It sucks I’ll have to take it off when I get home, though. It looks so cool!” 

Kei scrunched his face up like he was puzzling out a particularly hard math problem.

“Why do you have to take it off when you go home? Your parents would care? That’s st-“ 

Tadashi cut Kei off. 

“No, not my parents,” Tadashi chewed on his lip, “I don’t want anyone at school to see and say weird things about me.”

Tadashi settled on “weird” rather than what he really wanted to say: true. His biggest fear was that people would say true things about him. Kei’s face was still pinched in anger but Tadashi could see the gears whirling behind his eyes. 

“Okay, so I’ll do it too.”

He plucked the bottle of nail polish out of Tadashi’s hand before sticking his hands out the way Tadashi had his earlier. Tadashi stared at them, before looking back up at Kei’s face, steeled with determination. 

“What?” 

Tadashi felt like a broken record with how much he’d been saying that around Kei lately. 

“Paint mine too. We can match, and then if anyone says anything about you they’ll be saying it about me to.” 

Tadashi hesitated. The idea of being responsible for rumors being spread about Kei was worse than the idea of rumors being spread about himself. Suddenly he was struck by the urge to chew is nails like Kei did. Except Kei didn’t let him get the chance because Tadashi blinked and suddenly the bottle of nail polish was opened and Kei was painting his own hand. 

“I’m gonna do it anyway, Tadashi,” Kei said with determination, “so you can either match me or not.” 

Tadashi smiled a half smile. This was so stupid, but Kei was determinedly attempting to paint his right hand with his left and he was doing terribly. Tadashi loved him so, so much. 

Tadashi laughed and put his hand out for the nail polish brush before gently grabbing Kei’s in his other one and pulling it forward. His pulse was racing. Tadashi readjusted his grip so he could get close to Kei’s fingers; he did not want to mess this up. He couldn’t mess this up. 

His fingertips rested gently on Kei’s wrist and Tadashi could feel Kei’s pulse there, beating almost as fast as his own. Why? Kei was never affected by anything, ever. Why would he care that Tadashi was touching him? He touched him all the time. 

Tadashi finished Kei’s hand and moved to the other one. It wasn’t as good as Kei’s has been but it was passable. He gripped Kei’s wrist again and pulled it towards him. 

Kei gasped slightly this time, pulse still racing where Tadashi’s fingertips were leaving soft indents in the skin. Tadashi looked up briefly, before he realized how close they were and he looked down again. Fuck. 

But when Tadashi had looked up Kei’s eyes had been wide and honest with dinner plate sized pupils. Just like Tadashi knew his were. And he’d been blushing. Just like Tadashi knew he was. Tadashi knew why he was doing all those things but why would Kei be doing them too. 

All the other blushes and sideways glances Kei gave him crystallized in his mind. Oh. Oh.

Tadashi finished Kei’s nails with a flourish before putting the brush carefully back in its home. His hands were shaking. Kei felt the same way for him. There was only one answer and until Tadashi confirmed it he wouldn’t be able to sleep. And Tadashi never backed down from a challenge, not anymore. Tadashi carefully put the capped bottle back on Kei’s night stand. He still hadn’t let go of Kei’s hand. And Kei hadn’t made a move to move away either. 

Tadashi swallowed and looked up. They were still so, so close. 

“Tsuk-Kei.”

Kei’s eyes were unblinking, and when he spoke his voice was rough like the emotion in it had kept it raw. 

“Tadashi.”

Kei knew he’d been found out, he too smart not too, and Tadashi could see fear in his eyes. Tadashi leaned in closer, so close their noses were brushing. 

Kei shuddered out an exhale against Tadashi’s lips but didn’t move. He opened his mouth but all that came out was Tadashi’s name in that same raw voice. 

Tadashi closed the space between them and pressed his lips to Kei’s. It was gentle and closed mouth, just a brush of lips against the other boys but Tadashi could feel Kei relax into it, hands now gripping Tadashi’s knees where they were touching. Tadashi brought his hand up to Kei’s face gently, just wanting the reassurance and grounding of touching Kei’s skin. And then one hand wasn’t enough so he brought the other one up. 

Kei gasped against Tadashi’s lips and pressed in further and Tadashi followed his lead and pressed back. Like always. Kei’s tongue found it’s way into Tadashi’s mouth and his hands relocated themselves to Tadashi’s hips. Tadashi took advantage of his grip on Kei’s face and pulled him closer, leaning back as he did so. Some inherent need in him wanted them to lay down and he couldn’t find any reason to object. Kei’s body rested on his for a second and Tadashi gripped his fingers into the soft hay of Kei’s hair when his elbow hit something, and then the thunk of it hitting the table and soft thud as it hit the carpet of Kei’s room. 

And just like that the spell was broke. Tadashi’s eyes sprung open and before he could blink Kei was on the other end of the bed. Kei ran a hand through his already mussed hair. Tadashi smiled. He did that. 

Kei opened his mouth and for a second Tadashi’s heart sank before he started talking. 

“I like you, Tadashi.” 

Tadashi smiled widely before looking away. It was too much. And when he looked away he noticed something and the smile morphed into a wry grin 

“I like you too, Kei. A lot. But your nail polish broke and is like...all over your carpet.”

Tadashi couldn’t help but laugh as Kei lunges forward to look over the edge of the bed. 

“Fuck!”

**Author's Note:**

> find me on twitter @ rronanllynch 
> 
> thanks to jaime for the brian david gilbert inspiration and discussion i love u


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